The Way We Were

Last year I found these photos and had Alicia scan them in to the computer somehow.  I have no idea how stuff like this is done.  Anyway, I think they are so cool  This is what harvest was like when I was a kid.  In 40 years, the way we farm and the equipment we use, has changed significantly.  It's so interesting to look back, and then go to work in the morning, thankful for air conditioned cab, satellite guided combines, and semi trucks that are comfortable and efficient to drive.

This is John Deere 36B combine.  These used to be pulled by horses.  It was a huge advancement when tractors came along and pulled these machines instead

Before the advent of the self propelled machine, the tractor and combine just had to drive on the opening round of standing grain.  You can see the header is out to the side of the machine, instead of in front as with with self propelled machines.

Note the sun shade on the tractor.  Also on the combine.  Before someone figured out how to run the header controls from the tractor, a man had to stand on the combine and raise and lower the header height.  

This is the field we call the home place.  You can just barely make out the building in the distance where I grew up.  This photo was taken before I was born though!

You can see from this photo, that the combines had a leveling mechanism to keep the machine level for better thrashing.  The header would follow the contour of the hill while the machine stayed level.  

This is a shot of the header, taken from the machine.  It cut a 20 foot swath.  The grain traveled along the header with the help of a draper, that took it in to the machine where it will be thrashed.  

The thrashed grain was stored in a 60 bushel holding tank, called a bulk tank.  The chaff and straw came out the back end of the machine.  Just like it does today.

Today however, we have a 30 foot header, on a machine that has a 300 bushel capacity bulk tank and can travel at a much higher rate of speed, has an air conditioned cab and is guided by GPS.  

This isn't our truck, but it is similar to the size we all had and drove.

You can see the grain coming out the tail gate of the truck.  This truck hauled about 250 bushels.  I am hauling about 1,000 bushels with Starbucks.

And finally, this is a photo of my grandma Eleanora and then one of me, standing in the same field many years later!

Grandma Eleanor in the field at the home place.

And here I am, in the same field!